RED LEAF SALAD WITH ROASTED BEETS, ORANGES, AND WALNUTS

Red Leaf Salad with Roasted Beets, Oranges, and Walnuts image

Provided by Teresa Parker

Categories Salad Appetizer Side Roast Vegetarian Orange Walnut Beet Winter Healthy Vegan Pescatarian Paleo Dairy Free Wheat/Gluten-Free Peanut Free Soy Free No Sugar Added Kosher

Yield Serves 4 to 6

Number Of Ingredients 10

Ingredients

2 medium beets, trimmed and scrubbed
Olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
1/3 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 head red leaf lettuce, rinsed, dried, and torn into pieces
2 navel oranges
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed in a mortar and pestle
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup walnut oil

Steps:

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Lay the beets on one half of a large piece of aluminum foil. Sprinkle with olive oil and season with salt. Fold the foil in half to make a packet and roll the edges to seal. Lay on a baking sheet and roast until tender, 45 to 60 minutes. Let cool. Peel the beets and slice into 1/2-inch-thick wedges.
2. Keep the oven at 350°F; toast the walnuts on a baking sheet for a few minutes, 5 to 7, until they smell good. Remove the nuts and let them cool while you wash and dry the lettuce and tear it into a salad bowl.
3. Zest one orange-you need 1 teaspoon grated zest. Using a very sharp knife, cut the ends from the oranges, slicing just deep enough to expose the flesh. Cut off the remaining peel and pith. Then, working over a bowl, remove the segments, cutting between the membrane. Place the segments in a strainer to drain off excess juice.
4. Whisk together the dressing ingredients-the shallot, fennel seeds, and lemon juice-in a small bowl, adding the oil last, whisking as you pour it in so the dressing emulsifies a bit. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
5. Toss the nuts, beets, oranges, and the dressing with the salad, adjust the seasoning, and serve immediately.
Tips and Techniques
Teresa: "The oranges and beets are best tossed in at the last minute, when you dress the salad to serve it, lest the o‐juice and beety color run amok."
About the Cook
Teresa Parker is an expert on Catalonia and its cuisine, and runs culinary tours in Spain. She's a good friend of Merrill's and splits her time between New York City and Wellfleet, Massachusetts.